Abuse & Mental Disorders in Jehovah’s Witnesses (DSM IV)

The Mental Abuse of Jehovah’s Witnesses and Former Members

There is not a shadow of a doubt that millions are being psychologically abused at the hand of, and under the guidance of Jehovah’s Witness Watchtower Society. We cover the proof in the statement, as evidenced by scholarly research by mental health professionals who are educated in cultic abuse and it’s components. Those who have faced emotional or psychological abuse by cults are victims who largely require treatment, whether or not they leave the Jehovah’s Witness cult.

Child Abuse in Jehovah’s Witnesses – Mental

As determined by mental health professionals’ guidelines, the DSM-V manual provides classic signs and symptoms of mental health illnesses, abuses, and varying differences between common disorders. There are varying codes under which treatment providers must treat the a) abusers and b) victims (995.5 and 995.81 respectively).

The following classic symptoms and actions are noted in the manual, Value Options Provider’s Handbook, used by mental health professionals:

Child abuseand neglect may include but are not limited to the following:

Verbal and emotional abuse including withdrawal of affection and humiliation (if the child “sins” or is “unrepentant of sins” or “making Jehovah upset”)

Failure to provide a nurturing and safe living environment (or threats of same)

Failure to provide a nurturing environment can include severe punishment of a child’s actions, which are viewed as “sins”. The adult may punish the child using guilt tactics if the child isn’t “obeying Jehovah”. The parent may also choose to let the cult elders reprimand the child, removing themselves from having parental control. This can lead to the child having no parental authority, but rather having to live under the authority of the organization. This can cause confusion in the child, as to who is really the figure they must show obedience to as “role models” who can protect them. This is known as Paternal transference.

Adult Abuse

Consistent or frequent conflicts between adults

Efforts to maintain control over another adult

Inappropriate use of adult discipline

Inability to establish boundaries

Overprotective of another adult

Isolation of an adult

Emotional and verbal abuse including withdrawal of affection and humiliation

Caregiver neglect including failure to provide necessary skilled nursing assistance, nutrition, access to support for activities of daily living

Censoring of mail or phone calls

Censoring of an elder’s financial assets through coercion or manipulation

Reference: American Psychiatric Association, May 1994

Value Assets Provider Handbook: V-Codes, Abuse (www.valueoptions.com)

Jehovah’s Witness children and adults are undoubtedly emotionally abused, and are taught to mentally abuse while in the Watchtower organization.

Inadvertant Abuse and Control by Watchtower over Victims

Threats of shunning if one leaves the religion

Threats of abandonment by family

Threats of death by Armageddon

The awareness that one will lose their family if they leave

Actual shunning of, abandonment of, and cutting off of all love/contact of former members.

The video below offers significant proof that Jehovah’s Witnesses are abused through manipulation talks given at meetings and large assemblies. Threats loom over the heads of children and teens, causing anxiety, depression, phobias, and massive fears of abandonment, which may provoke and even directly cause mental disorders in adolescence and adulthood.

Common disorders amongst Jehovah’s Witnesses and former Jehovah’s Witnesses include:

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Specific phobia

Borderline Personality Disorder

Panic Disorder

Major Depressive Disorder

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

In 1994, the DSM-IV introduced religious and spiritual problems as important areas needing to be covered by mental health professionals. Among the topics discussed are loss of faith and change of religious affiliation, membership, practices and beliefs. However, many mental health professionals placed focus on the specifics involved in treatments of former religious cult members.

Researchers also conducted studies on common psychiatric disorders of criminals, such as murderers inside cults. The results found:

Paranoid schizophrenia

Dependent personality disorder

Shared paranoia

Shared psychotic disorder

Mixed personality disorder with features of narcissism

Paranoia

Antisocial traits

Delusional disorder with grandiose and persecutory themes

Psychotic disorder, not otherwise specified

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Bipolar Disorder

In studying cults which ended in catastrophe, the largest importance seems to be placed on the cult leaders. However, the victims many times seem to go with significantly less focus and attention.

Potential Psychiatric Disorders Among 7 Watchtower Leaders

The members of Watchtower Bible and Tract Society Governing Body include, as of 2016:

No one truly knows the personal lives or history of the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses. No psychological assessments are offered on their mental abilities in leading millions of members. Nothing is known as to their personal mental health or illnesses. Traits may be studied through talks they give, mannerisms, and personal encounters of those who know and have had experiences with them.

Millions profess “love” of these 7 men who do not disclose personal aspects of their lives to faithful followers. In fact, those who claim to know and follow the Governing Body members have never met them, yet they blindly follow any and all instruction given by the cult leaders.

For further research on cultic psychiatric disorders and their leaders: International Cultic Studies Association, John Burke, PhD

A former F.B.I. agent also states:

“Studies of individuals who exhibited psychopathic traits, such as the cult leader Jim Jones, reveal persons who apparently lack the ability to experience genuine empathy for others. Also, these individuals seem not to be able to use emotional feedback from others to alter their life course. However, what makes such psychopaths dangerous to society is that even though they apparently possesses a defective empathy, they are still able to intellectually analyze the emotional makeup of other people, and then turn that understanding to a criminal advantage.”

Destruction of the Mind of Cult Members

In a 1982 article in the New York Times, a prominent mental health expert states:

”Keeping devotees constantly fatigued, deprived of sensory input and suffering protein deprivation, working extremely long hours in street solicitation or in cult-owned businesses, engaging in monotonous chanting and rhythmical singing, may induce psychophysiological changes in the brain. The rhythmical movement of the body can lead to altered states of consciousness, and changes in the pressure or vibration pattern of the brain may affect the temporal lobe.” – Stanley H. Cath, Psychoanalyst and Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine (1982)

Watch the video below and pay close attention to the mind control techniques used by a religious cult speaker in the Jehovah’s Witnesses, during a large convention of brainwashed members. (2016)

Take note of :

Manipulation tactics which associate leaving the cult with leaving God.

Encouraging abandonment (abuse)

Instilling of fear of abandonment in children and teens through use of dramatic media

Distortion of biblical passages

Also take note that the speaker leaves out the following critical reasons why hundreds of thousands leave the cult:

Uncovering the scandalous history of the cult

Finding serious errors in literature written by Watchtower

False doctrinal teachings

Identifying unbiblical treatment of victims

Profound realization that the member is in a cult

False accusations of wrongdoing

Furthering biblical studies using outside resources

Abuse within the cult (mental, sexual molestation, abusers allowed to stay in the congregation)

and more.

An upcoming article will detail more reasons people leave the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

*If you are a professional in the mental health industry, and wish to be cited in an upcoming article on cultic or religious abuses, and wish to offer your counseling services to our readers, please contact us as DoctrinesofFaith@gmail.com and place “I want to help” in the subject line.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

We use cookies to analyse our traffic and personalize ads that may appear on our site. A cookie is a small piece of data that is stored on your computer or mobile device browser. The cookie allows the website to "remember" your actions when you visit. Most browsers support cookies, but users can set their browsers to decline them and can delete them whenever they like. Click Ok to proceed and accept cookies.Ok